When Ivar meets a girl with flaming red hair and eyes that cannot see, he begins to wonder how a sightless girl can see so much beauty in the world... And in him.
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When the ships began to pull up to the shore, Ailbe stood giddily at the helm. She'd never been anywhere but her home, and this new land was utterly thrilling.
"Are we almost there?" She asked Hvitserk excitedly, wishing she could see all that was around her in that very moment.
He smiled at her enthusiasm, looking back out to the Sandy beeches that grew closer by the second. "Almost."
"And we didn't die!" She exclaimed cheerily.
"Yet." Ivar spoke up from behind them, instantly crashing the previously happy tone to the conversation.
"Well, that's a good start." She continued optimistically. How she always found the light in every situation, neither brother understood. And yet, it was something they both adored. "Let's hope we don't die later either."
"Let's hope some of us don't." Ivar glared at his older brother, who Ailbe had grabbed onto for support when the boat began to shake - and who had reciprocated by holding her closely by the waist to steady her. Unlike what Ivar had assumed was going through his head, Hvitserk had not even contemplated their closeness. And he certainly hadn't predicted the jealous look in his little brother's eyes.
"Don't be mean, Ivar." She turned, with a slight stumble and placed her hand on his shoulder. "The only people the two of you should think of killing wear little crosses and think they're better than everyone else."
With that, the red-haired girl strolled to the back of the boat again to take a seat, clutching the side of the boat for every step of the way.
"Where was she when Sigurd was around." Hvitserk remarked, turning back to look at the water.
Ivar's blood ran cold at the mention of his brother's name. His icy eyes looking like the ocean, so filled with grief. Though he hadn't meant to kill his brother, no one would care. They would always blame him. Always. And there was nothing he could do that would get them to do otherwise.
But despite her blindness, Ailbe was not hard of hearing. In fact, her hearing was rather remarkable. She could hear most things that others couldn't. And Hvitserk's words were no exception. So, the question remained; Who was Sigurd?
When they landed, the question had been growing and festering in Ailbe's mind for a good half an hour. Still, she remained silent. From the way the brothers had interacted, she could sense that there wasn't exactly an easy mood around the subject. Should she even ask?
She decided, for now, that it would simply be best to get off the boat and help to set up camp. Her herbs and medicines were loaded into a large tent in the trees. Directly beside it was her tent, just so that she was close to the sick and wounded if needed. Though the others steered clear of the area around the sick tent, she tried to stay as near as possible. It may not have been the nicest place to sleep, but she never did put herself before others anyway.
"What is it like?" She asked with a dreamy smile, trying her best to imagine but no thoughts could manifest. She had no clue what it looked like. How could she when her mind couldn't see in images? She'd never seen anything her life, so what was she to know of it? Still, she tries her hardest to envision it.
"There's lots of trees..." Hvitserk tried. "And grass..."
"And the sky?" She asked. But Hvitserk had no answer for her.
"It looks like the sunset the night we first met." Ivar looked over just in time to see her face light up with joy, filling his usually cold heart with warmth.
"That's the first time I ever really experienced a sunset." She thought about it dreamily. "It was beautiful."
"Yes, it was." Ivar repeated, although he wasn't at all talking about the sunset anymore. Of course, Ailbe had no concept of that. How could she? No one had ever found her beautiful before. But no one had ever given her the feelings that Ivar had either. She didn't know why but she felt inexplicably drawn to him. Like kindred spirits, both broken down by their disabilities but in different ways.
Hvitserk chuckled at his brother, seeing right through the thinly veiled flirtations that Ailbe hadn't at all noticed.
"Well, I think I'm going to rest." She spoke up finally, yawning a little.
"Yeah-" Ivar snapped out from his thoughts, noticing that he'd been in a world of his own. "Sleep, we'll see you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow, Ivar." She smiled warmly, waving him goodbye as she went inside her tent. But as she left, her thoughts did not quiet. All she could think about was him.
Hellooooooooo hope you're all well!! I'll be updating as quickly as I can :) but this holidays is getting real hectic all of a sudden lol. Anyways, I stayed up to write this because I have a mild obsession with this book. -Rhi
